December 7, 2025
Curves, chaos, and contrast
Desperately Seeking Squircles (2018)
From smooth corners to sharp words: Figma’s squircle ignites nerd fights and dark-mode memes
TLDR: Figma detailed the quest to accurately add Apple’s smooth “squircle” shape, and commenters split between math-sticklers arguing about the correct curve and users roasting unreadable dark‑mode equations. It matters because tiny design choices—and basic accessibility—spark big reactions in tools millions rely on.
Figma’s engineer dropped a love letter to Apple’s iconic “squircle” (that smoother-than-rounded-square icon shape), and the comments instantly turned into geometry court. The article waxes poetic about curves and continuity, but the crowd? Split. Design romantics cheered the obsession over tiny details; math purists came for the equations with scalpels out. The biggest spark: a debate over which math should define the shape. One commenter challenged the author’s dismissal of a classic curve option, basically asking, “why must that center point stay put?” It’s the internet’s favorite showdown: vibes vs. proofs.
Then came the plot twist—dark mode. While minds were melting over curvature, another user noticed the equations were nearly invisible on a dark background. Cue the roast: “Figma forgot to remove the alpha.” The thread morphed into a meme parade about how the real constraint isn’t math—it’s contrast. People joked the squircle is “just a smug rounded square” while others insisted the smoothness feels like a river pebble and that’s the whole point.
In short, Figma tried to capture Apple-level polish, and the community turned it into a two-act play: Act I, Which curve rules? Act II, Who QA’d dark mode? And honestly, both acts stole the show
Key Points
- •Charles Eames defined design as arranging elements for a purpose and emphasized working within constraints.
- •A Figma engineer researched how to add Apple’s squircle shape to the design tool.
- •Apple introduced squircle-shaped app icons with iOS 7 on June 10, 2013.
- •Squircles differ from rounded squares by having continuous perimeter curvature, yielding smoother transitions.
- •Industrial design examples (e.g., MacBook corners) show deliberate curvature continuity, informing UI design choices.